Starting a private practice takes clinical training, courage, and often the hardest part of all: figuring out the business side without any guidance. The Heard Private Practice Launch Grant exists to close that gap for therapists who are ready but need a foundation to build on.

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To help them get up and running, every recipient receives $5,000, a year of SimplePractice, and free access to Heard's software and financial guidance while they get up and running.

This year, we selected three recipients, each with a clear vision and building something different.

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We're proud to introduce the 2025 Private Practice Launch Grant awardees:

Nia Henderson, LMFT | Illinois

"I'm done pouring my energy into systems that don't take care of the people holding them together and I am ready to create systems that do."

Nia Henderson spent nearly a decade studying psychology and neuroscience before becoming licensed in Illinois in September 2025. Now she's building Soft Spot Therapy Collective, a practice rooted in relationship, creativity, and community.

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What stood out about Nia's application is how honest she was about what she's up against. As a Gen Z therapist in her twenties without generational wealth to fall back on, she knows she can't absorb expensive mistakes. Taxes, business formation, financial systems: these are the difference between a practice that survives and one that doesn't.

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She put it simply: the grant gives her "thoughtful foundation-building over reactive scrambling."

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Nia is launching in 2026.

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Laura Vargas, LCSW | Colorado

"I view grief as a public health issue that is being ignored by society."

Grief is one of the most undertreated areas in mental health, particularly grief tied to substance use deaths and losses that carry stigma. Laura Vargas has spent her career working at that intersection.

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She helped start Philly HEALs, a nonprofit that provided substance-related grief support to thousands of people, and presented on the topic nationally. After relocating to Colorado, she's returning to direct client work and building a practice of her own.

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As a Latina immigrant and Spanish speaker, Laura is filling a specific gap: the shortage of bilingual therapists who specialize in grief. For many Spanish-speaking families navigating loss, finding a therapist who can work in their language and understand their cultural context isn't easy. Laura's practice is built for them.

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She launched in September 2025 and is already seeing clients.

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Eli Keller, LMFT | California

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"The hardest barrier isn't external — it's internal. It's the part of me that wonders if my viewpoint is valid, if my niche is needed, if my voice belongs in this field."

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Eli Keller has been seeing clients through a group practice in California while teaching at CIIS. He's fully licensed, has honed his niche, and is ready to build something. He's been focused on getting the financial and compliance infrastructure right before he does.

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His practice is built around men who struggle with anger and grief: a population that often doesn't seek help and can be hard to reach. As a dad and therapist, Eli knows this terrain personally. He's felt the pressure of trying to be self-sufficient and hold everything in, and his work is about transforming that.

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"Healing happens when people feel understood and connected," says Eli. "I serve men to shift strength's narrative — from holding everything in to reaching out and belonging again."

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Eli is launching in 2026.

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Follow their journeys

We'll be releasing a video series over the coming months, starting with each recipient's story. Subscribe to the Heard newsletter to follow along.

If you're a therapist thinking about private practice, their stories are for you.

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